Oscars 2025 Live Blog: I'm Talking Winners, Speeches, Fashion And More

Welcome, welcome! ABC’s official Oscars Red Carpet special is now underway, but before we get into all that, here are a few highlights that were witnessed during E!’s build-up to tonight’s ceremony.

• Both Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande look amazing in their Wicked-honoring dresses — Erivo in Louis Vuitton and Grande in Schiaparelli Couture — and Erivo deserves to win the EGOT for her dress alone. But as our sister site Marie Claire points out, Grande’s dress (crafted in part with stylist Mimi Cuttrell) features a bubble-inspired sheer skirt that boasts around 190,000 crystals.
• Whoopi Goldberg's dress from Christian Siriano is shimmery Old Hollywood glam in all the ways, similar to Selena Gomez's classic and classy look (from Ralph Loren) is paying homage to Sophia Loren, with 16,000 glass droplets and Rosemont crystals affixed to it.

• Speaking of old(er) Hollywood, Whoopi Goldberg also brought up her favorite Oscars memory being when her former co-host Billy Crystal was wheeled out onto the stage dressed as Hannibal Lecter.
• Timothée Chalamet looks kind of like he's cosplaying as the "yellow hat" worn by Curious George's The Man in the Yellow hat, but I say that in the most respectful and positive way possible. His monochromatic look is somehow both stylish and comfortable-looking, and just makes me want to slow down in traffic for some reason.
• Loving the women-in-suits looks from such talents as Lena Waithe and The White Lotus breakout Lisa, though the latter is technically still wearing a dress.
• Doja Cat's cheetah dress from Balmain — inspired by 1950 looks, with millions of sequins on it — apparently took dozens of artists thousands of hours to hand-apply everything on the dress. And the look is a stunner that she'll apparently be changing out of later on in the night. Put it in a museum.

Amy Poehler’s advice to her friend and Oscars host Conan O’Brien:

Time will tell whether or not he successfully alters his height for the evening and/or makes any foot-related outfit decisions.

Severance EP and frequent director Ben Stiller paying tribute to Gene Hackman on the red carpet:

For those wondering, Wes Anderson's The Royal Tenenbaums was the movie they co-starred in together.

Zoe Saldaña looks great in her dark-red custom Saint Laurent dress, but something she noted during her red carpet interview might make Emilia Pérez's Golden Globes wins seem suspish:

Shots not really fired.

Sing Sing Colman Domingo is one of several celebs making the red trend work spendidly at this year's Oscars, having worked with stylist Alessandro Michele for a custom Valentino suit that makes the already stylish celeb that much more vibrant amidst his colleagues and competitors.

Jeremy Strong talking to Jesse Palmer felt like both sides of the entertainment spectrum awkwardly trying to get past each other down a narrow grocery store aisle.

But we survived, and just in time for the show to start!

OPENING PERFORMANCE: Instead of having host Conan O'Brien kick off this year's Oscars with the usual batch of laughs, viewers got to witness a show-stopping pair of standalone performances from Wicked co-stars Ariana Grande ("Somewhere Over the Rainbow") and Cynthia Erivo (The Wiz's "Home") before they paired up on "Defying Gravity" and got everyone in the building on their feet. How can they go anywhere but downhill from here?

This X post sums things up accordingly:

Yessss to the visual of Conan O'Brien crawling out of Demi Moore's body (and then returning to look for his shoe) in a ridiculous nod to The Substance. I have to hope this will be the case for every film nominated this year.

CONAN'S OPENING MONOLOGUE: Rating - A+

Starting off with some energetic cries for the still-sat audience to sit down, Conan O'Brien brought out his signature self-deprecation and off-the-cuff demeanor. A sample joke about one of the year's big nominees:

His comment about Timothée Chalamet's yellow suit:

Love that suit. You will not get hit on your bike tonight.

About the Nicole Kidman and Antonio Banderas drama that wasn't nominated, Babygirl:

O'Brien also joked about cutting to John Lithgow looking not angry, but slightly disappointed, if winners' speeches take too long. And anyone who keeps talking will get their early acting headshots shown to audiences. (Chalamet's first headshot was an ultrasound pic. Classic.)

Adam Sandler totally made the opening monologue a winner by popping up in his sweats for a high-decibel appearance that had him also showering Chalamet with praise before he left the auditorium, having been insulted by Conan.

Another musical moment featured Dancing Deadpool, the Sandworm from Dune 2 playing the piano and more. And it ended with him noting that the show was already running four minutes overtime.

I hope this doesn't mean he'll only appear once in the back half of the show.

AWARD #1: ACTOR IN A SUPPORTING ROLE - Kieran Culkin (A Real Pain)

Kieran Culkin got the first bleeped speech of the night with this one after calling out former Succession co-star Jeremy Strong's performance in The Apprentice, and then cursing again when noting he couldn't curse.

Culkin then dipped into a wild story that called back to referencing a baby-related wager with his wife that came up during his 2024 Emmys speech, and said that bet went a step further at that point, and she said she would have his desired fourth child if he won an Oscar.

And now....

Kieran Culkin's performances literally bring new people into the world. There's no award for that, and also not one for best speech, no matter how much we'd like to campaign for it.

AWARD #2: Animated Feature Film - Flow

To preface this, presenters Andrew Garfield and Goldie Hawn were pretty adorable together before announcing the noms and winner. There are ways that Garfield's praise could have come across as weirdly scripted or sleazy, but it was very sweet.

Director and co-writer Gints Zilbalodis took the stage with co-writer Matīss Kaža and producers Ron Dyens and Gregory Zalcman, noting that the adult-skewing animated film was the first Latvian film to win an Academy Award. As Zilbalodis put it:

AWARD #3: Animated Short Film - In the Shadow of the Cypress

Iranian co-directors Shirin Sohani and Hossein Molayemi took the stage for a slightly chaotic speech due to both language barriers and what seems like it might have been a stressful afternoon. According to Molayemi:

Sounds like the kind of thing that would happen to me. Although "directing an Oscar-winning short film" does not sound like me at all.

AWARD #4: Costume Design - Paul Tazewell (Wicked)

With this historic win, Paul Tazewell is now the first Black man to win an Oscar for Costume Design, and I think many watching at home probably saw this one coming. His looks even semi-inspired some of the best red carpet looks of the awards season, so three cheers for Tazewell.

The costumer designer definitely shouted out Wicked's dynamic duo in his speech, saying:

Less importantly, and more comedically: Lily Rose-Depp, John Lithgow, Connie Nielsen, Elle Fanning, and Bowen Yang took the stage, with Yang humorously missing the memo that they weren’t meant to be dressing up as the characters from their nominated films, and he came decked out as Wicked’s Pfannee. Leading to him declaring Lithgow as the eventual winner for Least Supportive Best Friend.

Lukewarm take: Nick Offerman should be the voiceover guy for most things in the future.

AWARD #5: Original Screenplay - Sean Baker (Anora)

Gotta love an award that gets preceded by Nick Offerman poking fun at his former Parks and Rec co-star Amy Poehler.

And props to Sean Baker, who gave thanks to the sex worker community for their influence and impact on crafting the acclaimed film's screenplay.

AWARD #6: Adapted Screenplay - Peter Straughan (Conclave)

Peter Straughan's speech was a nice one, and without any satirical jokes that Conan likely would have written for it. But he did call out his daughter in a pretty funny way, saying:

Conan O'Brien slayed me for announcing Scarlett Johansson and June Squibb to the stage as "My hall passes," and then dubbed them Scar-Jo and Ju-Squoo.

AWARD #7: Makeup and Hairstyling - Pierre-Olivier Persin, Stéphanie Guillon and Marilyne Scarselli (The Substance)

Gotta love seeing Demi Moore looking not just stunning, but also loving and appreciative as Pierre-Olivier Persin gave his thank-you speech.

Die Another Day star Halle Berry took the stage to pay tribute to Barbara and Michael Broccoli family for their many years of spearheading the James Bond franchise, though that relationship came to an end when the family transferred the rights over to Amazon MGM.

Fans weren't only treated to a series of clips from past Bond films, though those were obviously also shown. No stranger to dancing, The Substance co-star Margaret Qualley took the stage with a number of tuxedo-wearing Bond-abees for a choreographed number.

Then Thai superstar Lisa came out in a different outfit from her tux-dress for a lively performance of "Live and Let Die."

But holy shit, Doja Cat's "Diamonds Are Forever" dress...

And it turns out if you can't get Adele on the stage to sing her Oscar-winning theme for "Skyfall," then bringing in UK singer/songwriter Raye is a more-than-suitable substitute. She killed it, right down to that final high note.

Someone who was clearly moved was the latest M portrayer to hit the big screen, Ralph Fiennes, who apepared to be choked up a bit.

I'm not even much of a Bond fanatic, and I'll probably give each of these performances a re-listen in the coming days.

AWARD #8: Film Editing - Sean Baker (Anora)

Sean Baker landed his second Oscar win after previously winning for Original Screenplay. He joked about the importance of editing by jabbing his own directorial efforts, saying:

Baker is also the second winner of the night to thank their dog, by my count. Shout out to Bunsen/Bunson.

Another lukewarm take: Da'Vine Joy Randolph should get All-Time Nominations Announcer, and other celebs can just stand around her on the stage.

AWARD #9: Actress in a Supporting Role - Zoe Saldaña (Emilia Pérez)

Unsurprisingly, Zoe Saldaña capped off her highly successful awards season by winning the Oscar and delivering what has been the most emotional speech of the night so far. And was the only one to date where someone screamed "Mommy!" several times.

Saldaña's win for portraying Emilia Pérez's Rita Mora Castro was another groundbreaking victory, as the actress herself addressed in her speech after pointing out her hubby's gorgeous hair. As she put it:

Here's to Ben Stiller still reminding everyone how funny he is while presenting the award for Production Design from a constantly raising and falling set.

AWARD #10: Production Design - Wicked (Production Design: Nathan Crowley; Set Decoration: Lee Sandales)

AWARD #11: Original Song - "El Mal" from Emilia Pérez (Music by Clément Ducol and Camille; Lyric by Clément Ducol, Camille and Jacques Audiard)

As Mick Jagger came out to present, he noted that the Academy wanted Bob Dylan to present, but that all of the nominees this year were Complete Unknowns. Dad jokes for grandfather-aged musicians. Gotta love it.

The trio of Clément Ducol, Camille and Jacque Audiard also took home the win for best song at the Golden Globes, but that speech didn't end on the highly awkward moment of orchestra music playing as Camille and Ducol were in the middle of their own a capella performance.

Conan O'Brien's wildest joke of the night so far:

Understandably, that joke got some attention on social media.

AWARD #12: Documentary Short Film - The Only Girl in the Orchestra

Molly O’Brien and Lisa Remington took the stage for a sweet speech that was unfortunately interrupted by the music, which is NOT a good sign for the rest of tonight's speeches. That's two in a row.

AWARD #13: Documentary Feature Film - No Other Land

The directing quartet of Basel Adra, Rachel Szor, Hamdan Ballal and Yuval Abraham took the stage, with Adra speaking to being a new father, and hoping that she's able to live the kind of life that he couldn't, in a more understanding and welcoming world. Abraham then took the mic and made one of the first outwardly political statements of the telecast when speaking about equality for Palestinians, saying:

A welcome and deserved standing ovation and tribute to the Los Angeles Fire Department for their ceaseless efforts to combat the destructive wildfire season. Even Conan O'Brien nodded and said thank you, as if he had anything to do with all the heroism.

But he did get some of them to share some cornball jokes that even he didn't want to say, such as the following:

Yowzahhh!

AWARD #14: Sound - Dune: Part Two (Gareth John, Richard King, Ron Bartlett and Doug Hemphill)

Whoever paired Miley Cyrus and Miles Teller together to present the award for Sound...better luck next time.

This win marked the third time someone was cut off by music, and I'm kind of shocked Conan didn't bring out the instrument-playing Sandworm again. We've seen it play a piano and harp so far, but what about a kazoo?

AWARD #15: Visual Effects - Dune: Part Two (Paul Lambert, Stephen James, Rhys Salcombe and Gerd Nefzer)

Gal Gadot's height advantage over Rachel Zegler could almost be a feat of visual effects if it wasn't just plain reality.

While in the background, Zegler looked just as overjoyed for the quartet's win as they did.

And somehow, still nothing from the Sandworm?

I know Ana de Armas was already in a James Bond movie, but gaw-damn, they look right in line to join the next franchise entry.

AWARD #16: Live-Action Short Film - I'm Not a Robot

Writer-director Victoria Warmerdam's speech was sadly cut short by the music, but the award is more important anyway.

Morgan Freeman paying tribute to Gene Hackman following his shocking death was a poignant way to kick off the In Memoriam segment, which featured a slew of talented Hollywood vets like M. Emmet Walsh, Shelley Duvall, Kris Kristofferson, Teri Garr, Cheng Pei-Pei, Robert Towne, Donald Sutherland, David Lynch and many more, all to the emotional harmonies of an on-stage choir. Fitting that the lineup of tributes would end with Hackman himself.

AWARD #17: Cinematography - The Brutalist (Lol Crawley)

Joe Alwyn, Dave Bautista, Alba Rohrwacher, Zeo Saldaña, and Willem Dafoe took the stage for the presentation, and I do enjoy having stars from respective films speaking to why the category's nominees are deserving of recognition and the potential win. And Alwyn went to bat for Lol Crawley, who did indeed get the win.

AWARD #18: International Feature Film - I’m Still Here (Brazil)

The awards are coming fast and furious now, and Penelope Cruz was a solid choice to present the award for International Feature Film. The highly acclaimed political biographical drama's director Walter Salles shared a solid speech that was the latest to face orchestral send-offs.

Mark Hamill being played out to the Star Wars theme is great, and the timing is not suspect at all, coming after Conan O'Brien made a politically charged joke about Anora.

AWARD #19: Original Score - The Brutalist (Daniel Blumberg)

The soft-spoken Daniel Blumberg shared a sweet speech that initially showered praise on The Brutalist's director Brady Corben, saying:

To pay tribute to the late, great music producer and career-blower-upper Quincy Jones (who passed away in November 2024), the Oscars really held to his "Q" nickname with a trio of queens. The Color Purple co-stars Oprah Winfrey and Whoopi Goldberg took the stage to share some memories and praise for the Grammy-amassing talent.

The duo then introduced Queen Latifah for the night's second The Wiz-inspired performance for "Ease on Down the Road."

The performance was a banger, and even Queen called out front-row stars who were up on their feet and dancing, such as Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo. I wonder why they were dancing. Hmmm. If only I had some wicked good clues to go by. And now I've offered up a dad joke worse than what Mick Jagger delivered.

This is a better thought to end that performance on.

AWARD #20: Actor in a Lead Role - Adrien Brody (The Brutalist)

Lightning has struck once again for Adrien Brody, who was once the youngest Best Actor winner for The Pianist, and the appreciation within him was on full display in his long speech. He spoke to the length of his career between that first win and now, saying:

The actor shared a list of thank-yous after the above, and the music tried to stop Adrien Brody's extended speech, but he shushed them right up. At least until they started playing again a minute or so later, and he left the stage.

Social media wasn't so happy about this win for one reason or thirty others, with A.I.-related complaints making up a chunk of them.

AWARD #21: Directing - Sean Baker (Anora)

The two-time Oscar-winning legend himself Quentin Tarantino took the stage with trés-casual vibes to present the Oscar for Best Director. And upon winning and accepting the trophy, Sean Baker started his third speech of the night by speaking directly to his fellow filmmaker:

I love how gleeful Baker seemed to be on stage, implying he maybe didn't expect to be standing up there. And since he mentioned it was him mom's birthday, let's all give her some rousing happy returns. HAPPY BIRTHDAY, SEAN BAKER'S MOM!

AWARD #22: Actress in a Leading Role - Mikey Madison (Anora)

Something of a stunner upset for first-time nominee Demi Moore after all of her pre-Oscar wins, Anora's Mikey Madison took home the Oscar for Best Actress, paying tribute those she worked with behind the scenes of the film.

Demi Moore didn't exactly look pleased, but did clap for Madison as her speech concluded. But social media was a bit more vocal about the displeasure over The Substance's star losing out.

And then there's this, which isn't quite right, given Susan Lucci's many nominations prior to her first win, but still.

Just saying, could we get Conan O'Brien and Billy Crystal as Oscar hosts next year? And make the telecast like 5 hours long? But if only one of those happens, I'd understand, as long as it's the first one.

AWARD #23: Best Picture - Anora

Welcomed to the stage by When Harry Met Sally's Billy Crystal and Meg Ryan, Anora producer Alex Coco dedicated the Best Picture win to his son born in October during the same week of Anora's release. Cute.

Fellow producer Samantha Quan also shared some impassioned words before director Sean Baker, who is now as familiar with the Oscars stage as Conan O'Brien himself, shared the following inspirational thoughts:

I want to thank the Academy for recognizing a truly indepent film. This film was made on the blood, sweat and tears of amazing indie artists. And, um, long live independent film.

From his mouth to Hollywood God's ears.

And that's all she wrote! This year's Oscars delivered a lot of the wins everyone expected, though Anora''s partial sweep definitely shook things up the most.

Thank you to everyone who followed along with me during the telecast and its earlier-than-normal start time. And the same appreciation goes to anyone choosing to read along after everything is said and done. See you next year (and probably for the next several upcoming 2025 awards shows).